I grew weary in the second half of the sagas; the men were so ‘grand’ while the women were so disheartened. Alas, I saw the ladies’ honorable power. The average temp of 39 degrees Fahrenheit in Iceland may have played a part in the passions of the Volsung sagas too. The Sons of Odin were Pagan, were Christian, were so mighty, great hunters and ‘slewers’, handsome with great horses, courageous, big, strong, well dressed, manly, warriors with the finest weapons in battle, great-famed, high minded, well-beloved, and each braver and mightier than any one before. Whew! Bredi shot more deer than Odin’s son Sigi; Sigi murdered him. And this is how it seemed to go; each man mightier than the last. Sigurd said in chapter 18 of the Volsung Sagas, “…never did I meet with a man so strong that I did not think myself the stronger; and all were afraid of me.” Lo, they were not loyal to their women and kin, including some forbidden sexual relations, making it difficult to apply their deeds to our lives, man or woman. The women in these Icelandic sagas were braver than many (men) and earned great honor. They did not make a name for themselves in battle or travel, and they weren’t allowed in politics or legal matters, but in kinship and marriage they battled and won. This is where they stood to gain honor or dishonor. Personal and family honor were more important to them than gold. In Christianity it is said that pride is defeated for the sake of peace. I think the women did their part. Women couldn’t be armed, did not speak out in public, and appeared to be onlookers until behind closed doors they shamed and provoked men to action. Punishment came to all, women included, but not before they had their say with kin. Protecting family honor was foremost. Three women ready to risk their lives for kin and honor were Signy, Brynhild and Gundrun. They desired vengeance and the blood of those who wronged their kin. Signy was more loyal to her brother than to her husband and children. She didn’t want to marry King Siggeir. She knew he’d kill her brothers and father; she tried to warn them. When her father was killed and her brothers captured, she sought revenge. She sewed her sons’ skin to their shirts and tore it away to measure their strength. They failed the test. She asked her brother to kill her children; he wouldn’t, so she disguised herself and had a child with her brother, Volsung strong. She had the child kill the other two. Vengeance complete. Laid and dying in the king’s hall she said ““I have worked so hard to bring about vengeance that I am by no means fit to live. Willingly I shall now die with King Siggeir, although I married him reluctantly.” She was not kindred to her children; she wanted to rebuild the honor of her Volsung family. Sigmund said to his wife Brynhild “Though art the fairest that was ever born.” (ch. 24) She, a mail warrior, replied that men break such promises. “It is not fated that we be together” she told him. He said “no wiser woman shall be found, teach me more of thy wisdom” (ch. 24) and asked her hand in marriage. They plighted troth. Sigmund’s son and Brynhild’s brother desired the same woman. Her step-son killed her brother. Her husband offered gold and wealth for compensation. She took matters into her own hands and told the killer to drink poison to prove he had the heart of a Volsung. He died; she died, but not before she accomplished vengeance for her brother. Gudrun said she would never wed Atlee, “I cannot take my heart from thoughts of Sigurd. Give not this man to me, for an evil thing shall come, and of his sons.” (ch. 33) Veneance prevailed for the sake of kin. Her brothers had killed her first husband, Sigurd. King Atlee wanted to lure and kill her brothers for prizes and treasures. He killed them and she said “You will never pay for my brothers to my satisfaction.” and “Yet we women are often forced to bow to your strength.” (ch. 33) She killed their two sons and fed the king their blood to drink, and roasted hearts to eat. She said to him “it is my desire to bring grievous shame on you. No punishment can ever be cruel enough for such a king.” As she stabbed him in his sleep, he told her the effort was not honorable. She did not care what he thought. Soon after the angry queens went bathing and talked, the world was famed in warfare. The book ends with and I agree: “May the grief of all maidens ever be ‘minished”. (ch. 43)
readingmedievalnature 
You write that “behind closed doors they [women] shamed and provoked men to action.” Stories like the Volsung Saga show the strong influence women had in this kind of male-dominated society. It causes me to wonder about all of the women who must have shaped events through the ages by advising male leaders.
In the story women usually exert their power “passively” through intrigue and secret plots, and this is sometimes associated with magic, such as the Ale of Forgetfulness. Do you think the power exerted by women is seen as “legitimate” in the Volsung Saga, or is it something the men think is bad or dishonorable somehow?
“They did not make a name for themselves in battle or travel, and they weren’t allowed in politics or legal matters, but in kinship and marriage they battled and won. This is where they stood to gain honor or dishonor.” For me, this comment perfectly sums up the roll of women in The Saga of the Volsungs. I also think you bring up an interesting idea of women defending honor in dishonorable ways. Obviously to Signy and Gudrun, the ends justified the means, and I can’t help but wonder if this was a common part of the honorable “code.”